From the depths of West Africa, from by Jaipur and Calcutta
Came a people seeking a new dawn
From Lebanon and Syria, both Shanghai and Manchuria
Forged by struggle, this nation was born
Challenged by a diversity of creed and culture
Haunted by memories of traditions long gone
We have sought and found consolation in each other
And through sweat and tears our model nation was born.

Trinidad and Tobago, there never was a nation so blessed
Trinidad and Tobago, yeah, you are the jewel of the West
And if Wise Men came from the east, together we can show the world
Differences could exist in peace, something beautiful to behold
As we Syrians, Chinese and Africans, Caribs and East Indians
Celebrate the birth of our nation.

We survive the colonialists and have shown the imperialists
Our destiny is in our hands
We have fought against prejudice to create a togetherness
In we country unlike other lands
In this country everybody could find it equal
Be it opportunities, civil rights or space
And in this society we ent have no special
Or ridiculous obsession with colour and race.

Trinidad and Tobago, there never was a nation so blessed
Trinidad and Tobago, yeah, you are the jewel of the West
And if Wise Men came from the east, together we can show the world
Differences could exist in peace, something beautiful to behold
As we Syrians, Chinese and Africans, Caribs and East Indians
Celebrate the birth of our nation.

As a rainbow nation today, to the Almighty we does pray
For the wisdom and courage to go
With the roadblocks in our way and the constant price we must pay
For the freedom to believe and go
One day our country could make a contribution
That would benefit all the peoples in this world
As we look ahead towards true emancipation
This life that we have is more precious than diamond and gold.

Trinidad and Tobago, there never was a nation so blessed
Trinidad and Tobago, yeah, you are the jewel of the West
And if Wise Men came from the east, together we can show the world
Differences could exist in peace, something beautiful to behold
As we Syrians, Chinese and Africans, Caribs and East Indians
Celebrate the birth of our nation.

One remembers Eric Willimas, Capildeo and Cipriani
Like Rienzi, they were famous sons
Who have held our fate in their palms and have shaped our destiny
And a history for the younger ones
We have produced scholars and sportsmen of high esteem
Our steelband and calypso is truly great
As we live and love each other, let's cherish one dream
To become the world's one and only utopian state.

Trinidad and Tobago, there never was a nation so blessed
Trinidad and Tobago, yeah, you are the jewel of the West
And if Wise Men came from the east, together we can show the world
Differences could exist in peace, something beautiful to behold
As we Syrians, Chinese and Africans, Caribs and East Indians
Celebrate the birth of our nation.

Source: The lyrics posted on this blog are often transcribed directly from performances. Although it is my intention to faithfully transcribe I do not get all the words and I have a knack for hearing the wrong thing. Please feel free to correct me or to fill in the words that I miss by dropping me a message via e-mail. I'd be forever grateful. Thanks in advance!..............................................................................................................................

A Note From The Gull

Thank you, Mighty Trini, for the upliftment! It is with some heaviness that I have been thinking all day about the limited state of emergency declared by the PM. I am at once relieved that this is being done finally yet I am also concerned about possible hidden implications for us as a democracy and asking myself questions that maybe only time will answer about what exactly will be accomplished over the period. I can see that the lack of mobility after 9:00 p.m. will definitely have an impact on criminal activity since many nefarious activities are conducted under the cover of darkness. Will special passes be given to those who are bound by duty to break the curfew? Have people been told what to do when there is an emergency during the curfew and they need to travel? It will be difficult but, I hope, worth the inconvenience.

Unless a malignancy is contained, has not metastasised and can be removed successfully by surgery, the treatment that can follow tends to be prolonged and invasive. "Good" and "bad" in the body will reel from the shock of the therapy. Perhaps this is unavoidable also in the body politic, since "good" and "bad" we grew, roots intertwined, into the harvest which we are reaping today.

I support Trinidad and Tobago's limited state of emergency as long as every effort is made to protect vulnerable citizens during this time from opportunistic agents whose intentions might not be benign.

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Lord, Please walk beside me through this day. Clear the heavy air with the lightness of Your Presence. Guide my hands and steady my heart that I may give comfort when I cannot give hope, that I may give relief when I do not have a cure, and that I may radiate Your healing peace when the limits of science, time, and the human body overwhelm us all.Amen